


sinner's sorrow

by mariokartprince (technicalViolist)



Series: scarlet sorrows and ruby redemptions [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, anakin doesnt stay vader, baby leia cameo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-21
Updated: 2017-09-21
Packaged: 2019-01-01 05:21:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12149487
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/technicalViolist/pseuds/mariokartprince
Summary: this moonlit wasteland pays little heed to fallen Jedi, and makes no sound.





	sinner's sorrow

**Author's Note:**

> anakin is currently hiding out on tatooine with baby leia, a few months after order 66.

it wasn't -

supposed -

to end like this.

he stares out into endless nighttime desert and tries to not let the weight of his failures crush him. he barely suceeds. the only thing keeping him standing upright is that conviction that he will _never_ make the same mistakes twice. he has learned now, has let the harsh winds ripping across the landscape sear lessons once forgotten into his skin. he dare not forget them again, lest the entire galaxy pay the price. he will become better than the fool he was.

his daughter cries out beside him. she likely senses his despair, tiny force-sensitive powerhouse that she is. he turns, reaches down, picks up this tiny bundle and smiles softly down at her. she still whines. on an impulse, he sends reassuring waves to her through the force. this was never his strong suit, but he must try. _everything is fine_ , he attempts to project. _everything is fine. you're safe. we're safe._ the effect is immediate. leia suddenly quiets, and smiles up at him in wonder. he grins, helpless. it has only been a few months, and he is already in love.

the adorable distraction his daughter poses only temporarily serves to soothe his disquieted soul. his furnace heart has cooled to some forlorn, melancholy thing. the fires of vader's rage have been extinguished, replaced by low embers of a deep, righteous anger that he does not want to examine closely. he cannot afford to, not yet.

something in the wind shifts, and anakin reflexively throws his awareness into the force -

\- _something **screams**_ -

\- and nearly falls to the ground under weight of the sheer _darkness_ surrounding him. only years of training keep him from crying out. it is not just his own shaded aura, but a pervasive disease permuting the very fabric of the galaxy. what were once thousands of bright pinpoints of light is now a writhing, oily mass of evil and malice. he feels sick to his stomach. he helped create this. he had _wanted_ to.

hyperaware of his daughter's own force sensitivity, he puts leia to sleep with a clumsy force suggestion before he allows himself to fully break down.

he falls to his knees on cool sandy stone, and sobs quietly. he does not rise until morning.

this moonlit wasteland pays little heed to fallen Jedi, and makes no sound.

**Author's Note:**

> although i have tons of world building for this AU, the motivation to write for it rarely strikes. so, updates in this series will be erratic. i will not abandon it, however. i plan to include fics with 5 y/o leia on tatooine with anakin, 10 y/o leia and luke meeting, 15 y/o leia and anakin becoming more involved with the rebels, 19 y/o leia & luke with the original trilogy events in this AU, and then sequel trilogy things after tlj is released.


End file.
